1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to methods and systems for transforming, via a fastening mechanism, a volume or compartment of material into varied shapes or configurations. More particularly, the present invention relates to a transformable volume of material that can be selectively divided by a slider that connects two sides of material while simultaneously disconnecting two other sides of material.
2. Background Information
Many existing systems that provide for alternative configurations of volumes of material involve the use of fasteners. One popular type of fastener often used with transformable volumes is a zipper. A typical zipper includes a track or chain having two rows of teeth that interlock with each other. A zipper slider is located on the track so that a user can pull on a pull tab on the zipper slider in order to move the slider up and down the track, thereby causing the zipper to zip open and closed as desired. Some zippers have a stop at one or both ends of the zipper to stop the zipper slider from moving off of the track. Some zippers are designed so that the zipper slider is never removed from the track; other zippers are designed to allow the zipper slider to be removed from one row of the track, thereby allowing the material attached to one row of teeth to be further separated from the material attached to the other row of teeth.
One existing system that provides for alternative volume configurations uses multiple rows of zipper teeth. In particular, this system includes three adjacent rows of zipper teeth, the central row of which has two opposing zipper sliders each located at opposite ends of the row. The user may thus choose to attach one of the adjacent rows to one of the zipper sliders so that the central row and the adjacent row can be zipped up to form a first zipper track. Alternatively, the user may choose to attach the other adjacent row of teeth via the opposing zipper slider so that this adjacent row and the central row can be zipped up to form a second zipper track. This multi-zipper system is used to vary the size or volume of a laundry bag, for example.
Another volume modifying system involves two parallel zippers that lie on top of each other. The user can choose to use either of the zippers to zip up an article of clothing in which the zippers are incorporated. For example, this system, when incorporated into a pair of pants, allows a person to choose to zip up either the first zipper or the second zipper, thereby effectively creating two alternative waist sizes of pants within a single pair of pants. This particular volume modifying system can thus be useful in accommodating weight gain or loss by the person who wears the clothing.
Yet another volume modifying system has an exchange portal through which the ends of a pair of zipper teeth are inserted and through which each row of teeth are thereby exchanged and mated with another pair of zipper teeth. This system requires an elongated extension at the end of the row of zipper teeth that the user must manually align and insert into a small slot in the exchange portal. This volume transforming system allows an occupant inside a hazardous chemical jumpsuit to attach the jumpsuit to zipper teeth on the side of a tent without exposing the occupant or tent to the outside environment.